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KEY TAKEAWAYS: - PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi defended Pakistan cricket against criticism. - Naqvi highlighted Pakistan's rise from ninth to sixth in T20Is and eighth to fifth in ODIs. - He questioned whether cricket was “over” after the recent Test series loss to England, given South Africa lost to Namibia and India to Ireland. - Pakistan made sweeping changes in the Test squad after losing the first two matches against England. Mohsin Naqvi defends Pakistan cricket amid criticism Pakistani Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi defended the recent criticism on Pakistan's cricket set-up, stating that despite Pakistan's difficulties in Tests, there has been significant progress in white-ball cricket. Naqvi's reaction has emerged after an eventful phase in Pakistan cricket. After facing heavy losses in the first two Tests of the three-match series against England, the PCB released seven players before the third Test. Speaking to Geo News, Naqvi admitted that Pakistan has struggled in tests but questioned the assertion that Pakistani cricket is in complete decline. MORE: 'World laughing harder': Khawaja takes brutal dig on Pakistan and Aaqib Javed Mohsin Naqvi brings up India's T20I series defeat to Ireland Naqvi used previous setbacks of other leading cricket playing nations to claim that loss doesn't imply that the whole cricketing system of a particular team has fallen apart. “South Africa lost to Namibia. India lost to Ireland. Did the cricket end there too?” he remarked. Talking about the decision to axe several senior players, including Salman Ali Agha, he said that the aim was not to get rid of the players but rather bring about change. "For us, each match is important," Naqvi explained. "Agha is such a great player. But if he is not clicking, there are some reasons for that. So the purpose is not to remove someone from it. But if they are not clicking, then change them." No way Mohsin Naqvi said this while defending PCB — Brutal Truth (@sarkarstix) September 3, 2026 Naqvi brushed off criticism amidst demands for greater accountability "SA lost to Namibia & India to Ireland. Does that mean their cricket is over? Pakistan has improved from No 9 to 6 in T20Is & 8 to 5 in ODIs."🤣🤣 pic.twitter.com/Ws8vSVOwQ3 MORE: BCCI alarmed by India’s off-spinner crisis before Test series vs NZ, AUS: Report Naqvi highlights Pakistan's rise in ICC rankings The PCB chairman then directed the critics to the improvements Pakistan has made in its ICC rankings since the inception of the new coaching setup. According to him, Pakistan's ranking in ODIs had gone from eight to five, and their ranking in T20s had moved from nine to six. Naqvi also said that Pakistan had won four (actually three) out of six bilateral ODI series. "Since we brought our new coaching team, your ODI [ranking] was at eighth place. It went to fifth place. In T20, you were at ninth place. And now you are at sixth place. Our success rate has gone from 24% to 73%." According to Naqvi, it is necessary to consider the rankings and performance along with individual losses and not judge the whole Pakistan set-up on the basis of two losses. He further said that Pakistan "still have a long way to go" and that going from ninth to first in three months or six months is "not possible". MORE: Afridi sends message to PCB chief Naqvi amid Pakistan cricket's downfall Naqvi admits Pakistan's Test cricket has been poor Getty Images While defending the white-ball record, however, Naqvi was not reluctant to speak about the team's problems in Tests. Pakistan lost their first Test against England by an innings and 103 runs, then went down by 194 runs in the second. The team’s performance forced PCB to release seven members of the squad and include some uncapped players in view of the third Test match. "I think that our performance in Test is very bad," Naqvi stated, explaining that there are many reasons for the poor results of the team. Moreover, Naqvi mentioned some aspects that go beyond performances; however, he explained that he does not want to talk about it before drawing some conclusions. The PCB has defended the mid-series changes at the same time, with Naqvi calling them "essential." MORE: Former Pakistan selector claims Babar Azam ‘protected’ Imam-ul-Haq in faking injury Naqvi's defence misses the bigger problems in Pakistan cricket Naqvi may be justified in pointing out that Pakistan cricket should not be assessed on the basis of their two Test match losses alone. The statistics, records, rankings, and other factors can be taken into account, as well as their success in white-ball cricket. However, talking about India losing to Ireland or South Africa losing to Namibia is hardly going to help resolve Pakistan’s selection and Test cricket issues. It is up to the PCB to ensure that their decisions regarding selection, coaching, and Test cricket work in their favor. For all the latest cricket news, opinion, and commentary, and to share your voice, head to our Facebook, Instagram, and X (Twitter) pages.